There were a few good things to come out of the pandemic—remote work for one, to-go cocktails, and historically low mortgage rates. And the homeowners who locked in mortgage rates around 2% or 3% may just be the big financial winners of the pandemic, as rates are currently hovering around 7%. As of Tuesday’s reading the average 30-year fixed rate came in at 6.75% and the average 15-year fixed rate at 6.17%.
As Fortune has previously reported, the low mortgage rates of the past are keeping some homeowners from selling and also triggering a wave of “accidental landlords,” because they don’t want to sell and lose their low rates. For some, they’re simply feeling lucky to have locked in lower rates for, what they say are, their “forever homes.” Either way, there’s pressure on both sides of the market, as 99% of borrowers have a mortgage rate below the current market rate, according to Goldman Sachs.
